This invention relates to online networks, and more specifically to building a social graph for a network. The social graph includes connections or interactions between individuals of the network and can be used to target content and advertisements to individuals better.
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks. People are spending more of their time on the Internet. Via computers and smartphones, people are surfing the Web, sending e-mail, watching videos, reading news, making appointments, shopping, and much more. The Internet and Web has taken market share from many other communications media including the telephone, television, radio, magazines, and newspapers. Consequently, content providers and advertisers want to learn more about the activities and habits of online users in order to better target content, including advertisements.
The activities and connections, including sharing activity, of Internet users of are important to determine how content for users should be personalized. Social networking sites, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are membership communities. To become a member, the social network site collects information about its members, which may include information such as name, phone number, e-mail address, and often much more. After becoming a member, the member can add connections to other members, such as their friends specified, for example, by name or e-mail address. In these communities, the connections static and form a static social network. Within these communities, the activities of its members can be tracked.
Despite the success of static social networking sites, the size of the Internet and Web (which can be referred to as the “open Web”) is significantly larger. Activities of Web users and how these users interact with other users are also important information from which to determine how to personalize content, services, and advertisements. However, unlike a static social network, users in the open Web are anonymous and do not specify their “friends.” Further, in the open Web, due to privacy concerns, any information gathered should not include any personally identified information. It is a very difficult task to obtain a social graph of users of the open Web.
Therefore, there is a need for a technique of building a social graph of users of the open Web, including tracking of the sharing activity of users. This will improve ad targeting and content personalization according to user connection models based on sharing activity among users for online, mobile, and IPTV media.